Rental Application Rights

A landlord renting a property has rights in selecting a tenant. Tenants also have rights about the factors that can be considered in selection. While most landlord-tenant issues are governed by states and localities, Federal fair housing laws apply to tenant...

Rent-To-Own Agreements

Picture this agreement between two players in a board game: ‘If you land on my property 10 times, pay $5 more each time, and then you can buy it for $200.’ The first player still owns the property for those 10 turns, but the second player has secured a set...

What is Litigation?

In US law, one party can bring a lawsuit against another party in court. In civil cases, the party bringing the suit — called the plaintiff — generally claims to have incurred loss through actions of the other party – the defendant. In criminal...

Alternatives To Litigation

While there’s no concrete answer to how long a lawsuit process might take in court, US cases take over a year on average, and cases running 5 or more years are not unheard of. The load of cases before state courts has increased over time, and staffing has not....

Divorce Basics

When a couple marries, they gain the legal right to do certain things together, such as own property or owe debts. Divorce is the legal termination of marriage; the legal status, responsibilities and arrangements of the married couple are cancelled. Divorcing requires...